Middle-of-the-road perspectives

Trump Is Universally Disliked, But He Is Delivering

Despite President Trump’s inability to create strong personal ties with other people, including his staff, Congress and world leaders, one must concede that his performance has been impressive.

One of the biggest issues for Trump is his escalating conflict with Congress. It’s clear that Democrats abhor him and would initiate impeachment proceedings if they had the votes to do so. Every day Trump foils assail him by branding him in the vilest manner.

It may be that Republicans bear a similar level of frustration and animosity towards the president. Most do not express their feeling publicly because of certain retaliation. But it’s likely that an increasingly larger number of Republicans would cut him loose in a heartbeat if the opportunity arose. This could lead one to believe that Trump’s desire to capture the Republican nomination in 2020 is in jeopardy.

Trump doesn’t have a real support group in at the White House. Even his most ardent aides are frequently shocked, embarrassed and furious with is off-the-cuff style. He admonishes his most important advisors in tweets and flip-flops on important issues as part of his deal making “acumen.”

You would find few Americans who would want to have a beer with this man, much less work for him. He is, arguably, one of the most disliked men to ever hold the office of president. In fact he has not been able to halt the mass exodus of aides and advisors. The allure of working in the White House for a president is not enough to retain the most intelligent and highly ambitious young people.

Yet Donald Trump’s performance is impressive. He has put points on the board.

The ill-conceived and incredibly expensive Obamacare was his first target. Trump was not able to shut it down as promised, but it is slowly imploding much to the delight of conservatives.

Tax reform has created a great attitudinal change in the country. Many people have become much more optimistic about their future, financially and otherwise. Trump promised to put more money in the pockets of the middle class, and he did it. Also he decreased the tax burden on corporations and made them more competitive globally. The result includes a vibrant stock market and greater consumer confidence.

Trump’s generals have masterfully dealt with the craziness in the Middle East without incurring any significant increases in US casualties. Al Qaeda, ISIS and the Taliban have been stymied to a great extent. These successes have decreased the chances of additional terror attacks by foreign nationals.

Trump has deftly handled the Syrian calamity. Unfortunately Russia and Iran have entered the fray and supported the Assad regime. But increased carnage has not spread outside of Syria to any great extent.

Trump is likely to win most of his points in the immigration imbroglio. His negotiating technique is unorthodox, yet he has painted Democrats into a corner. At some point he will get financing for the wall and eliminate migration and lottery abuses in exchange for amnesty of nearly two million innocent DACA aliens. Democrats will not be able to resist this political opportunity.

Regarding illegal aliens and sanctuary cities and states, the administration is appropriately taking action against local governments that are thwarting the efforts of immigration officers to protect the country.

The latest ray of hope is North Korea. It’s far too soon to expect the Little Rocket Man to give up his nukes. He, his father and grandfather have bamboozled previous US presidents. But direct negotiations and very damaging sanctions could temper this existential threat.

On the other hand expectations for sensible gun control and a reduction in domestic violence are unlikely. The NRA is too strong, and Trump is probably going to cave to the lobby. Whatever minor common sense changes are made will not be enough to protect our children.

There’s a lot more going on that could alter the increasingly positive political landscape. The scandal investigations will go on forever (it seems), Russia and China are becoming more aggressive and new tariffs could impede world economic advances.

In any case Trump has delivered. We may not like the man, but results are results. In the opinion of this writer, there are no successes that will enable the president to be reelected in 2020.Trum